1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to shoe horns and particularly to a shoe horn device having a handle grip with a long telescoping handle extension and a shoe horn head at an opposite end of the handle extension which folds over the handle in its retracted position for a more compact arrangement to fit into a pocket or purse of a user, wherein the shoe horn head is replaceable with other types of heads for use with the device.
2. Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98
A shoe horn is a great aide and often necessary to assist a user in inserting a foot into a shoe or slipping a shoe over a foot, especially for very tight-fitting shoes. A long handled shoe horn is a great convenience for putting on a shoe without bending over by simply holding the shoe horn against an inside back of a shoe from a standing position while slipping the foot into the shoe. For people who cannot bend over, such as people with leg injuries, or cannot easily bend over, such as elderly or other joint stiffened people, a long handled shoe horn is a necessity for putting on shoes without bending over.
With the current mobile lifestyle and various activities away from home requiring having to removes shoes and put them on again having a portable long handle shoe horn is a great convenience to some and necessity to others as indicated above. Some such situations include exercise classes or sports participation, such as swimming or bowling, medical visits, or just trying on clothing or shoes at a self-service shoe store. Prior art devices do not address this problem in an easy-to-use compact portable shoe horn which extends out to a useful length.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,182, issued Feb. 24, 2004 to Shrewsbury, depicts an extendable shoehorn device for permitting a user to put a shoe on a foot without having to bend over. The extendable shoehorn device includes a handle assembly having a pocket clip thereon. An offset shoehorn member is mounted to an end of the handle assembly for permitting a user to more easily put a shoe on their foot.
U.S. Pat. No. D302,490, issued Aug. 1, 1989 to Denney, provides the ornamental design for a shoe horn.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,355,745, issued Oct. 26, 1982 to Nelson, shows a specially constructed shoe horn for persons having limited body bending movements. The device has an elongated pivotable handle, which enables a person to put on footwear without substantial bending at the waist, hips or knees.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,884,823, issued Mar. 23, 1999 to Carroll, claims a collapsible shoe horn that includes a shoe horn tongue having a generally thin and smooth body portion for aiding the user in putting on a pair of shoes. The side edges of the shoe horn tongue are slightly curved upwardly in a concave manner so that the shoe horn tongue conforms to the shape of the heel of a human foot. A neck portion is integral with and extends from the bottom of the shoe horn tongue. The neck portion has a pair of opposing flanges, each flange having a dap opening formed within the interior side thereof for receiving opposing ends of a shoe horn handle. The dap openings have a smooth dimple-like dap surface extending from the outer exposed surface of each neck flange for protecting the shoe horn user from the sharp ends of the shoe horn handle.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,386,216, issued May 14, 2002 to Cubelli, describes a cane and grasping device provided with a shoehorn. An upper tubular member is telescoped within a lower sleeve or sheath having a cane foot at its lowermost end. The sleeve is adjustably set along the member to set the length of the cane by a detent assembly employing a pawl and aperture arrangement. An article grasping mechanism is located at the lower end of the upper tubular member and includes a pair of toothed jaws with meshing teeth. The jaws extend from the tubular member at one end, opposite a handle attached to the tubular member at the other end. A lever is attached at the handle end and is coupled to the jaws via cables and pulleys. The jaws are biased open and are closed by the cables as the handle is squeezed closed. The sleeve encloses the jaws in the closed state when not in use. When the sleeve is removed from juxtaposition over the jaws, the jaws are biased open by torsion springs. The handle and lever are then used to close the open jaws over an article to be grasped.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,788,531, issued Jan. 29, 1974 to Oldfield, claims a collapsible shoehorn with two shoehorn curved sections telescoping together for storage and telescoping out for usage.
U.S. Patent Application #20040255995, published Dec. 23, 2004 by Garrett, illustrates a walking stick having a shoehorn/gripper and magnet accessories. The walking stick or cane comprises a support having a foot at one end thereof and a handle at the other. A gripper device adjacent the foot includes a shoehorn assembly pivoted to the support for movement toward and away from the foot for grasping objects between the end of the foot and the shoehorn assembly. The gripper device is operated by a trigger mounted adjacent the handle and a rod generally parallel to the support. In one embodiment, the shoehorn assembly includes a shoehorn which acts to grasp an object. The walking stick may have an adjustable length, by providing telescoping sections.
What is needed is an easy-to-use compact portable shoe horn which fits into a pocket or purse of a user and opens easily and extends out into a shoe horn with a rigid elongated handle extension of a useful length.